A toga was a large piece of draped cloth that adult male citizens wore in ancient Rome. Think of it as a heavy wool blanket, usually white or off-white, that wrapped around the body in elaborate folds and hung over one shoulder. Unlike a shirt or jacket with sleeves, a toga had no fasteners or pins: it stayed in place through careful folding and draping, which took real skill to get right.

Roman citizens were sometimes called togati, meaning “people who wear togas,” because the toga marked someone as a proper Roman citizen. Senators wore togas with a purple stripe to show their rank, while candidates running for office wore bright white togas to stand out.

Togas were formal and impractical for everyday work: imagine trying to climb a tree or play sports while wrapped in a heavy blanket! Romans typically wore them only for important occasions like government meetings, religious ceremonies, or public events. For regular daily activities, they wore simpler tunics.

Today, people sometimes wear sheet-wrapped costumes called togas at costume parties, though these look nothing like the real, carefully draped Roman garments. Real togas required practice and patience to wear correctly. One Roman writer complained that getting dressed in a toga felt like preparing for battle.